October 30, Chapter 8. Terrestrial Planet Overview. The Terrestrial Planets. Terrestrial Planet Overview. Terrestrial Planet Overview 10/29/2008

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1 October 30, 2008 Reminder: Online quizzes due by test date Observation tonight, weather permitting, dress warmly! Chapter 8 Planetary distances Exercise Chapter 8 The Terrestrial Planets Copyright (c) The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display. The Terrestrial Planets The four terrestrial planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars have similar sizes and structure These rocky worlds orbit in the inner part of the Solar System, too small and too warm to have captured massive hydrogen s like the Jovian giants They have very few possessions the Earth has the relatively large Moon and Mars has two small captured asteroids as moons Terrestrial Planet Overview Mercury smallest terrestrial planet, looks like Moon (gray, bare, cratered), essentially no Venus covered with deep sulfuric acid clouds in a dense CO 2, hottest planet, immense volcanic peaks tower over desolate plains Terrestrial Planet Overview Mars polar caps of ice and CO 2, vast red deserts with craters and dunes, canyons, and dry river beds, ancient volcanoes, thin CO 2 Earth blue seas, white clouds and ice caps, red deserts, green jungles, mountains Terrestrial Planet Overview Planetary size coupled with distance from Sun is the cause for these differences! 1

2 Mercury Mercury s radius is 1/3 and its mass 1/20 that of Earth Circular craters cover the surface with the largest one being Caloris Basin with a diameter of 1300 km Unlike the Moon where they are found almost exclusively in maria, congealed lava flows are found in many of Mercury s old craters and pave much of its surface Scarps Enormous scarps (cliffs), formed as Mercury cooled, and shrank, wrinkling like a dried apple Weird terrain feature opposite side of planet from Caloris Basin possibly caused by seismic waves generated by impact that created Caloris Weird Terrain Mercury s Temperature Mercury s noon temperature at the equator (about 700 K = 800 F) and nighttime temperature (100 K = -280 F) are near the Solar System s surface extremes These extremes result from Mercury s proximity to the Sun and its lack of Mercury s Atmosphere? Ice at the Poles? Its low mass and proximity to the Sun do not allow Mercury to retain an of any significance Its lack of volcanoes suggests that Mercury never had a significant Mercury s poles are always very cold, enough so that small ice caps exist there - perhaps the result of a comet impact that created gaseous water that drifted to the poles and froze out Note to editor: This image is From 3 rd ed. Newer images Are available in the literature 2

3 Mercury s Interior Another Large Impact Hypothesis Mercury s very high average density suggests that its interior is iron-rich with only a thin rock (silicate) mantle Two possible reasons for a thin silicate surface: Silicates did not condense as easily as iron in the hot inner solar nebula where Mercury formed Rocky crust was blasted off by an enormous impact Mercury s Magnetic Field Mercury s very weak magnetic field probably due to: Small molten core Slow rotation rate The field may be simply that its solid iron-nickel core is a huge permanent magnet, but one weaker than the dynamo-created magnetic field of Earth Mercury spins very slowly with a sidereal rotation period of Earth days, exactly 2/3 its orbital period around the Sun of Earth days Consequently, Mercury spins 3 times for every 2 trips around the Sun Mercury s Rotation Mercury s Rotation Such a ratio of periods is called a resonance Mercury s resonance is the result of the Sun s tidal force on Mercury and its very elliptical orbit the Sun cannot lock Mercury into a synchronous 1:1 rotation because of the high eccentricity of Mercury Mercury s solar day is 176 Earth days, longer than its year! Because of Mercury s slow rotation, near perihelion the Sun will briefly reverse direction in the Hermean sky Venus Venus has a mass and diameter very close to that of Earth However, the two planets have radically different surfaces and s 3

4 The Atmosphere of Venus Reflected spectra and spacecraft measurements show the Venusian is 96% CO 2, 3.5% N 2, and small amounts of H 2 O and other gases The Atmosphere of Venus The clouds of Venus are sulfuric acid droplets with traces of water The clouds are very high and thick, ranging from 30 km to 60 km above the surface Surface cannot be seen through clouds Some sunlight penetrates to surface and appears as tinged orange due to clouds absorbing blue wavelengths The Atmosphere of Venus The is extremely dense, reaching pressures about 100 times that of Earth s The lower is very hot with temperatures of 750 K (900 F) at the surface, enough to melt lead Spacecraft have landed on Venus, but do not survive long The Greenhouse Effect on Venus Large amounts of CO 2 in the Venusian create an extremely strong greenhouse effect The effect is so strong Venus s surface is hotter than Mercury s although Venus is farther from the Sun The high temperature and density of Venus then create the high Venusian atmospheric pressure The Surface of Venus Ground features can be mapped with radar from Earth and spacecraft orbiting Venus since radar can penetrate the Venusian clouds Venus s surface is less mountainous and rugged than Earth, with most of its surface low, gently rolling plains The Surface of Venus Only two major highlands, Ishtar Terra and Aphrodite Terra and about 8% of the surface, rise above the plains to form land masses similar to terrestrial continents 4

5 The Surface of Venus Ishtar Terra is about the size of Greenland and is studded with volcanic peaks Maxwell Montes, the highest, is at 11 km above the average level of the planet (the equivalent sea level reference) Surface Features Radar maps have shown many puzzling surface features (or lack thereof) Few plate tectonic features: continental blocks, crustal rifts, trenches at plate boundaries A few distorted impact craters and crumbled mountains Volcanic landforms dominate: peaks with immense lava flows, blisters of uplifted rock, grids of long narrow faults, peculiar lumpy terrain Surface Features These features indicate a young and active surface Venus s original surface has been destroyed by volcanic activity The current surface is not more than 500 million years old (much younger than Earth s) with some regions less than 10 million Volcanic eruptions have not been directly observed Some lava flows appear fresh Electrical discharges on Venus indicative of eruptions Brief increases in atmospheric sulfur content also indicative of eruptions Active Surface? Active Surface? Venus is not Earth s twin! Numerous volcanic peaks, domes, and uplifted regions suggest that heat flows less uniformly within Venus than Earth hot spot generation of volcanoes dominate on Venus, which is not the case on Earth Interior of Venus probably very similar to Earth iron core and rock mantle Venus still evolving into the smooth heat flow patterns found on Earth Earth rocks have more trapped water in them, making Earth rocks runnier than Venusian rocks and the Earth crust thinner (which will allow easier cracking of the crust into plates for tectonic movement) 5

6 First Image from Venus Pictures from the Russian Venera landers show a barren surface covered with flat, broken rocks lit by the pale orange sunlight sampling also indicated the rocks are volcanic Rotation of Venus Radar measurements show Venus is the slowest rotating planet, taking 243 Earth days to rotate once, and its spin is retrograde ( backward ) Two possible causes of this slow retrograde rotation: Venus was struck shortly after its birth by a huge planetesimal Tidal forces from the Sun and perhaps Earth may have shifted its spin axis over time Solar day on Venus is 117 Earth days Venus rotates too slowly to generate a magnetic field Mars Although its diameter is 1/2 and its mass 1/10 that of Earth, Mars is the planet that most resembles the Earth Mars extensively photographed by the Mariner, Viking, and Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft On a warm day, the temperature hits about 50 F (10 C) Winds sweep dust and patchy ice crystal clouds through a sky that generally is clear enough for its surface to be seen from Earth Sparkling white polar caps contrast with the reddish color of most of the planet Mars Vallis Marineris A rift running along the equator stretching 1000 km long, 100 km wide, and 10 km deep This canyon, named after Mariner, dwarfs the Grand Canyon and would span the U.S. Polar Ice Caps Change in size with seasons (Mars tilt similar to Earth s) Thin creates more severe extremes in the seasons leading to large ice cap size variations Southern cap is frozen CO 2 (dry ice) and its diameter varies from 5900 km in winter to 350 km in summer 6

7 Polar Ice Caps Northern cap shrinks to about 1000 km, has surface layer of CO 2, but is primarily water ice and has separate layers indicative of climate cycles (including ice ages ) Water contained in Mars caps is far less than that in Earth s caps Martian poles are bordered by immense deserts with dunes blown by winds into parallel ridges Dune Fields The Tharsis Bulge At midlatitudes, there is the huge uplands called the Tharsis bulge Dotted with volcanic peaks including Olympus Mons, which rises 25 km above its surroundings (3 times higher than Mt. Everest on Earth) Believed formed as hot material rose from the deep interior and forced the surface upward Scarcity of impact craters put its age at no older than 250 million years May have created gigantic Valles Marineris The Tharsis Bulge Largest Mountain in the Solar System Water on Ancient Mars From winding nature of features that often contain islands, it is inferred that water once flowed on Mars No surface liquid is now present Huge lakes and small oceans thought to have once existed evidence comes from smooth traces that look like old beaches around edges of craters and basins 7

8 Morning Frost Ancient Lake? Splash Craters The Atmosphere of Mars Clouds and wind blown dust are visible evidence that Mars has an Spectra show the is mainly CO 2 (95%) with traces of N 2 (3%), oxygen and water The s density is about 1% that of the Earth s The Atmosphere of Mars The lack of atmospheric density and Mars distance from the Sun make the planet very cold Noon temperatures at the equator reach a bit above the freezing point of water Night temperatures drop to a frigid 218 K (-67 F) Thus, most water is frozen, locked up either below the surface as permafrost or in the polar caps as solid ice The Atmosphere of Mars Clouds, generally made of dry ice and water-ice crystals, are carried by the winds As on Earth, the winds arise from warm air that rises at the equator, moves toward the poles, and is deflected by the Coriolis effect Winds are generally gentle, but can strengthen and carry lots of dust! 8

9 Not a drop of rain No rain falls, despite clouds Atmosphere is too cold and dry Fog seen in valleys and ground frost has been observed CO 2 snow falls on poles during winter Ancient Atmosphere of Mars Dry river beds indicate liquid water flowed in Mars s past This implies that Mars had to have a denser (higher pressure) to prevent the fast vaporization of surface water into the Cratering indicates that this thicker disappeared about 3 billion years ago Where did the go? 2 ways Mars lost its thick Mars was struck by a huge asteroid that blasted the into space Mars s low gravity coupled with low volcanic activity produced a net loss of gas molecules into space over the first 1-2 billion years of its existence, decreasing the effectiveness of the greenhouse effect to maintain a warm The Martian Interior Differentiated like the Earth s interior into a crust, mantle, and iron core Having a mass between that of dead Mercury and lively Earth/Venus implies Mars should be intermediate in tectonic activity Numerous volcanic peaks and uplifted highlands exist Olympus Mons and other volcanoes do not show any craters on their slopes indicating they may still occasionally erupt The Martian Moons Life on Mars? Phobos and Deimos are about 20 km across and are probably captured asteroids Their small size prevents gravity from pulling them into spherical shapes Both are cratered, implying bombardment by smaller objects Interest in life on Mars grew enormously with the misinterpretation of observations made by astronomer Giovonni Schiaparelli in 1877, who called certain straight-line features on Mars canalli meaning channels English-speaking countries interpreted this as canals and the search for intelligent life on Mars began Spacecraft photos later revealed features on Mars to be natural land structures 9

10 Viking spacecraft landed on Mars to search for life up closer no evidence found In 1996, a meteorite was found on Earth with a Mars origin Certain meteorite structures suggested Martian bacteria Most scientists today are unconvinced Life on Mars? Why Are the Terrestrial Planets So Different? Role of Mass and Radius Mass and radius affect interior temperature This in turn determines the level of tectonic activity Low-mass, small-radius planets will be cooler inside and hence less active than larger planets This relationship is in fact observed with Mercury (the least active), then Mars, then Venus/Earth Role of Internal Activity Internal activity also affects a planet s since volcanic gases are the most likely source of materials Low mass Mercury and Mars will have a smaller source of age than Venus/Earth and the low surface gravity of these small planets also means they will have trouble retaining the gases they receive Mars, Venus, and Earth all probably started with CO 2 s with traces of N 2 and H 2 O, but were then modified by sunlight, tectonic activity, and, in the case of the Earth, life Role of Sunlight Sunlight warms a planet in a manner that depends on the planet s distance from the Sun the closer the warmer Amount of warming depends on the amount and makeup of the atmospheric gases present Solar warming and atmospheric chemistry will also determine the structure of the, which may feed back into the amount of warming that occurs For example, warmer Venus lifts water vapor to great heights in its, whereas at cooler Earth, water condenses out at lower heights and the upper is almost totally devoid of water Role of Water Content Great differences in water content of upper s of Earth and Venus has lead to a drastic difference between their s at lower levels Water at high altitudes in Venusian is lost to photodissociation as solar ultraviolet light breaks H 2 O apart with the H escaping into space Venus, as a result, has lost most of its water, whereas Earth, with its water protected at lower altitudes, has not The water near Earth s surface then makes possible many chemical reactions not found on Venus for example, CO 2 (a greenhouse gas) is removed from the by dissolving in water 10

11 Role of Biological Processes Biological processes also remove CO 2 from the Dissolved CO 2 in ocean water is used by sea creatures to make shells of calcium carbonate When these creatures die, their shells fall to ocean bottom forming a sediment The sediment eventually changes to rock, thus tying up CO 2 for long periods of time With CO 2 so readily removed from our, mostly N 2 is left Some CO 2 can be recycled back into the by tectonic activity Green plants breaking down H 2 O during photosynthesis is very likely the reason Earth s has a high oxygen content Exploring Mars Twin rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have landed on the surface of Mars and have returned an amazing amount of data! Rock outcropping at the Opportunity landing site. Thought to be material deposited at the bottom of an ancient ocean Exploring Mars Closeup image of rock at the Opportunity landing site Possibly formed from sediment in flowing water Exploring Mars Image from Mars Global Surveyor, a Mars orbiter that ended its mission in 2007 A flat-topped mesa Exploring Mars A view of what appears to be a dried-up river delta Exploring Mars 11